The Black Lily
by LilyxxEvans
Summary: In 1976 Lily dyed her hair black. In 1976 James's parents died. In 1976 James gave up on Lily. In 1976 Petunia Evans became Petunia Dursley. In 1976 Sirius Black had a relationship last more than two weeks. In 1976 Lily removed the dye. In 1976 Lily and James fell in love


Disclaimer: I am not a British millionaire

Lily Evans was done with all the fiery temper jokes. It was a favorite of James Potter, her arch-nemesis, to crack one right as she got into a rage at one of his ridiculous pranks, and she was sick of it. So on July 6th, 1976, a flaming head of hair could be seen making its way towards the local barber, prepared for a drastic change. She had thought on this for months, however she had failed to inform even her closest friends of her decision, mostly because she was scared of their reactions. Hestia in particular, though. If anyone deserved a fiery temper joke, it was Lily's best friend of 6 years. It was regrettable that she had blond hair, because she loved Lily's hair where Lily hated it. If only they could switch, things would be perfect. Well, not perfect, but better. Dyeing her hair really didn't make a difference, but it helped her avoid the problem, and Lily liked avoiding the problem. Avoiding the problem was much more desirable than facing the problem head on. The problem being James Potter, who had plagued her with his proclamations of love since her 3rd year at Hogwarts, which brings us back to why she was dyeing her hair. In hopes it would inspire him to leave her alone. So steeling her confidence, she walked through the door, where she realized she had now been standing for the past 5 minutes. Approaching the woman at the front desk, whom she recognized vaguely as living down the street from her, she requested her favorite hairdresser since she was young.

Mrs. Briggs was a kindly woman in her mid fifties who always did a good job with Lily's hair, and who liked to give out lollipops. Lily was rather fond of lollipops, as they reminded her of simpler times before magic and Hogwarts... But best not to think too much about Tuney and Severus, both of whom she wasn't very fond of at the moment. Petunia, her older sister, had driven a wall between them when Lily was discovered magical and she was not. She took every opportunity to point out Lily's "freakishness", and was best avoided. Severus... thinking about Severus came with alot of painful memories the she didn't wish to think about. Ever since that day in 5th year, they had drifted apart, he to his Death Eater friends and she to her Gryffindor mates. He had apologized profusely, but she wouldn't hear it. What he did was unforgivable, and she had turned a blind eye to his muggle-hating tendencies for far too long. His apology just made it worse, because he had said that she was different from the other muggleborns, that she wasn't a mudblood. He didn't say the muggleborns were equal to purebloods, and that was what set her off. Severus was her best friend, but he was discriminating against her own kind and that wasn't okay. She still felt a pain in her chest at the thought of her old best friend, and she quickly stowed away those thoughts.

"Lily dear, are you alright? I've asked you what cut you wanted five times."

Dyeing her hair. Right. She had gotten sidetracked in her thoughts.

"I was actually hoping to color my hair today, Mrs. Briggs. I was thinking black or a very dark brown. I just need to get rid of the red."

"But Lily, your hair is the most beautiful red color, why would you want to change it?"

"I need a change. Please don't make me explain."

"Alright then, I think dark brown would be better for your hair in the long run, but it will be so dark you will hardly notice it isn't black."

That was why Lily really liked Mrs. Briggs. She didn't ask too many questions, but she genuinely cared for Lily.

"That sounds great. Thank you."

"No problem. Would you like a trim while you're here?"

"Just the dead ends."

"Okay"

The next two hours consisted of Mrs. Briggs painting Lily's hair with the dye, much longer than she had anticipated. The end result though... she couldn't recognize herself in the mirror. If it weren't for her trademark green eyes, she would have thought someone else was standing behind her. It was a good look for her though. Her pale complexion worked well with the dark hair, and if it was possible her eyes were even greener. She was satisfied. Now the only problem was explaining this to Mary, and Marlene, and Hestia. Maybe she should just avoid them all summer until the train to Hogwarts... No, she couldn't stand a solitary existence, even though she was very fond of procrastination. Something that may surprise those who pegged her as a bookworm, but she didn't enjoy studying or completing assignments early. She did it so that she could get the grads she needed to join the Auror Corps. after Hogwarts. She was very good in all her core subjects but transfiguration. Which James bloody Potter excelled at, probably just to spite her. Right. Mary and Marlene. Why did her thoughts keep drifting off in random directions? Mary was going to be upset. She was normally a pretty cheerful and loyal witch, with short brown curls and chocolate eyes. But when she was mad she was 5'2 of pure fury. It was scary. She didn't get mad often, but it would definitely set her off that Lily hadn't mentioned something this big to her. Marlene was a tall, stocky blond witch with piercing blue eyes. She played chaser on the quidditch team, and was very calm and tranquil. She didn't outwardly display her emotions, preferring to bottle things up, which caused more pain in the long run. They were all scheduled for a brunch the next day, and Lily was apprehensive. Best to just get things over with. So she started walking back home in her pink slippers that she had accidentally walked out with that morning. she could feel her cheeks flush red in embarrassment, before simply smiling at her own quirkiness and wishing she could fix that habit of turning tomato red. She really needed a tan.

Lily walked in to Tuney and her whale of a fiance making out on the couch. The sight made her gag. How could anyone kiss, much the less marry that thing? Vernon was rude, obnoxious, dumb and ugly. He was rich though, probably the only reason Petunia even looked at him. She quickly moved into the kitchen. Why couldn't they get a room? She was hiding in her own house. Ugh. She missed the old Tuney, the innocent young girl who played on the swings with her. In years past Lily may have started crying, but now it was only a dull ache. She would never fully stop missing her sister, but time kept going and so would she. She wasn't one to wallow in her own self-pity. She quickly grabbed a glass of milk before running up the stairs to her bedroom, decorated with photos of her friends and random everyday objects and places. She liked photography, and it was a hobby she used to occupy her free time. She walked to her bed and pulled out her transfiguration textbook. She still didn't understand the theory behind how animagis worked...


End file.
